Brazil: Rio de Janeiro – Copacabana Beach

The crowded sand of Copacabana is the epitome of Brazil – entire families, young and old, slathered in oil, lounging all day in front of the water – eating, drinking skol beer, jumping the waves (the water ain’t clean by any measure), and rubbing some more oil to get those perfect tans. Everybody is generally overweight and not toned and wearing the skimpiest imaginable beachwear. And the far southern end of the beach is Fort of Copacabana offering good views of the entire beach. By the evening the promenade is flooded with light and crowds roam around, drinking, dining, hanging out.